Zaffre, the flagship commercial fiction imprint of Bonnier Books UK, has pre-empted Annie Knows Everything by Rachel Wood, the owner of Rare Birds bookshop in Edinburgh.
Melissa Cox, publishing director, acquired UK & Commonwealth (ex. Canada) rights from Suzannah Ball at WME Agency in a 24 hour pre-empt. The book was simultaneously pre-empted in the US by Penguin Random House, acquired by Caitlin Mahony, and in Germany by Bastei Luebbe.
Annie Knows Everything is described as a ‘laugh-out-loud’ workplace romcom. After being unceremoniously let go from her job, Annie is willing to do anything to stay in New York – including taking another position for which she is wildly underqualified. The only problem? Her new boss, Connor, knows that Annie is only pretending to know what’s she doing. To make matters worse, her sister is going through a nightmare re-engagement, there are some seriously weird vibes in her friendship group, her workplace has a newfound tendency to fire its employees, and she has no idea how to code. But the more Annie raises the stakes on her scheming, the more she risks hurting the people who matter to her most.
Rachel Wood said: “When I first started writing Annie Knows Everything, my only mission was to make my friends laugh. I wanted to poke fun at how ridiculously seriously the tech industry takes itself and tell a story about two people who spend their days flirting when they’re meant to be working. Romantic comedy has always been a beloved genre for me, and to have found a kindred spirit in Melissa has been a dream come true. The entire team at Bonnier has shown so much enthusiasm for this project, and I feel so fortunate to be working with such an energetic and creative group of people. I couldn’t be more excited for the next chapter of this adventure and to share this book with the world.”
Melissa Cox said: “24 hour pre-empts sound exciting but there is nothing like the realisation as you read a submission that this is a book you need to publish – and the fear that another editor will beat you to it. Reading Annie Knows Everything I realised we were in the presence of a romantic comedy writer of rare talent – and it was my job to convince author and agent to take a leap of faith and forsake all others for Zaffre. In one of the most memorable acquisitions meetings I’ve ever been part of, I knew we were completely united as a publishing team in our ambition and passion so I am very proud that as a result, we were able to acquire a romcom that I believe delivers across every possible metric: it’s funny, it’s charming, it’s relatable, it’s sexy and it is so romantic.”
Rachel Wood is a Canadian writer from Toronto, now based in Edinburgh. After graduating with a Masters in Creative Writing from The University of Edinburgh, she began her career as a copywriter, before founding the book subscription Rare Birds Book Club in 2017. She opened Rare Birds Book Shop in Edinburgh in 2021, named ‘one of the coolest new bookshops’ by the Sunday Times. Annie Knows Everything is her first novel.
Annie Knows Everything will be published by Zaffre in hardback, ebook, and audio in May 2026.
Photo credit: Amanda Adams